Your Trusted Advocate from the Heart of South Bend

Hometown Pride, Legal Excellence: South Bend’s Own Rises from Construction to County Judge.

As a South Bend native, Judge Jason Cichowicz is proud to serve this community. Originally from South Bend’s Westside, Jason was raised on the south side of the city where he met his future wife while attending St Jude Grade School and went on to graduate from Marian High School. Jason continued his education by working his way through college at Indiana University as a construction worker where he earned a Bachelor of Business degree. Later, he attended the Thomas M. Cooley Law School where he earned his Law Degree.

Judge Cichowicz started his career in 2006 as a practicing attorney and established his own practice. Concurrently, he dedicated over 10 years of his professional life as a Public Defender, with a strong focus on family and children advocacy. Jason successfully managed these dual roles until 2018 when he was elected to his first term as St. Joseph County Probate Court Judge.

In addition to his legal and judicial commitments, Jason is a dedicated family man, spending much of his time with his wife Elizabeth, and two wonderful children. He also enjoys donating his time as a local Basketball and Baseball coach, and other various volunteer activities.

What is Probate Court?

Probate Court primarily handles cases establishing paternity, enforcing child support, child in need of services (CHINS), juvenile delinquency, guardianships, adoptions, and estates. The Probate Court Judge presides over cases and is the administrator for a team of Judicial Magistrates which do the same.

In addition, the Probate Court Judge is responsible for management and operations of the Juvenile Justice Center. The St. Joseph County JJC is only 1 of (3?) in the State of Indiana and is an important asset to our community. With hundreds of employees and multiple agencies working together daily to benefit children and their families. Including South Bend Public Schools.

Continuing Success

When he first took office in 2018, Judge Cichowicz outlined his priorities:

Increasing community safety and long-term stability for youth

Providing more support for at-risk children and their families

Providing crisis stabilization for youth

More support for at-risk youth and families

One of Jason’s proudest accomplishments is the complete expansion of the St. Joseph County CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) program. For the first time in its history, the wait list has been eliminated, and every child has a CASA representative. Maintaining “no wait list” is one of his key goals for the future.

In his tenure, Jason also instituted the court-appointed mediator program which facilities agreements between parties, which avoids lengthy and often contentious court hearings. He has also increased the ability for youth and family members to communicate through use of online meetings, google texting, phone calls, and more in-person meetings as family contact is key to a juvenile’s quality of life.

Helping youth in crisis

Understanding the needs of each youth in crisis is essential to making the appropriate recommendations for services and getting them the help they require. That is why, as Judge, Jason implemented the first crisis stabilization program at the JJC and created modern techniques for a comprehensive intake and case management. This more comprehensive intake and case management system prioritizes a mental health assessment which allows for a faster, more accurate way to identify high risk juveniles. This information is then used to provide counselling, treatment, and care for those individuals during their time in detention or on probation.

Crisis stabilization is a fully diagnostic services program that assists the court in understanding the unique needs of each individual, ensuring less stress, and better outcomes.

In addition to the crisis stabilization program, Judge Cichowicz initiated a new cognitive behavior intervention program to help youth find alternative ways to examine their thinking and actions and learn how they can lead them into trouble. This program has been a proven success as youth completing the program have been shown to have low rates of recidivism.

Community safety and long-term stability

Transitioning high risk youth back into the community can be a complicated and delicate process. That is why Judge Cichowicz established the Bridge Link program. This program focuses on learning job and independent living skills to prepare youth for life, employment, and successful adult relationships. In 2022, almost every individual participating in this program successfully exited after achieving a GED or gainful employment.

Understanding that school truancy and drop-out rates are a major issue for youth in our community, Jason made this a priority and established a truancy program with Mishawaka, Penn Harris Madison, and South Bend Community Schools. This program, in conjunction with Five Start Life, a program for character and leadership development, has successfully been used to keep youth in school. In 2022 alone, over 100 youths participated in this program.

Judge Cichowicz’s administration has worked hard to improve community outreach by concentrating on coordination and relationships with all local schools and local law enforcement agencies. He and his staff regularly participate in law enforcement strategy sessions with local, state, and federal authority to review and combat crime trends.